High-tech Fort Bliss command to get new leadership

Brig. Gen. Randal A. Dragon, commander of Fort Bliss' Brigade Modernization Command, will be leaving for a new assignment with the Army in a few weeks. (Vanessa Monsisvais / El Paso Times)

FORT BLISS -- A Fort Bliss unit is on the cutting edge of helping the Army stay up with technology, said its outgoing commander.

The Brigade Modernization Command, headquartered at Fort Bliss, has also helped to place the installation at the forefront of the Army's modernization efforts, Fort Bliss officials added.

Its chief responsibility is to plan and manage the twice-a-year Network Integration Evaluation held at Fort Bliss and White Sands Missile Range.

This unit evaluates different pieces of equipment and systems -- including computers, software, radios, vehicles, batteries and even renewable energy -- to see how they work together and then gives feedback to the Army, said Brig. Gen. Randal A. Dragon, commander for the Brigade Modernization Command.

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David Burge

"We evaluate how well they interact and if they allow soldiers to do their jobs better," Dragon said. "Does the equipment or systems make their jobs easier or harder?"

Dragon, a Virginia native, has been in charge of the Brigade Modernization Command since July 2011. He will relinquish command on March 26 during a Change of Command ceremony.

His successor will be Brig. Gen. John W. Charlton, who most recently was the deputy commander for Regional Command-East in Afghanistan.

Dragon said the Army hasn't announced where he will be going next.

Maj. Gen. Dana J.H. Pittard, commander of Fort Bliss and the 1st Armored Division, has served with Dragon three times during the past 11 years -- both in combat and at the Garrison level.

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"He is one of the finest soldiers in our Army," Pittard said in an emailed statement. "It has been a blessing to have him and his wife Leslie at Fort Bliss. General Dragon has done an incredible job of developing the Brigade Modernization Command and shaping modernization over the past two years.

"Thanks to his abilities as a leader and organizer, Fort Bliss has become the centerpiece for Army modernization and network integration," Pittard continued. "His impact is felt Army-wide as well."

Dragon said that every day he serves the nation and the Army has been "fantastic."

In particular, during the past two years, Dragon said he's been working on helping the Army keep up with technological changes.

During the semiannual Network Integration Evaluations, the Brigade Modernization Command teams up with soldiers from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division to test different types of equipment and systems out in the field.

Dragon has overseen three of the four exercises that have been held so far.

"We have taken a look at 143 systems overall during past NIEs and we've recommended that the Army field 36 of those 143," he said. "And the Army has funded 24 of those 36."

The Brigade Modernization Command is a relatively small unit. It has 133 soldiers assigned to it and another 58 Department of the Army civilian employees.

It partners with the Army Test and Evaluation Command and the System of Systems Engineering and Integration Directorate in what is known as the Triad. Both of those organizations have offices within the BMC headquarters.

The Brigade Modernization Command's affiliation with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team also gives it about 3,800 soldiers who can field-test equipment. A key part of the modernization effort is based on soldier feedback, Dragon said.

Real soldiers use the equipment and are then asked a variety of questions, he said.

"The bottom line: Is this something you want to use in combat, to have in your tool kit in combat?" Dragon said. "How does this improve your ability to do your job?"

Fort Bliss and White Sands together create an ideal location to perform these type of tests, Dragon said. Together they form a land area that's almost the size of the state of Connecticut.

"We have terrain, ground space, air space, the electromagnetic spectrum," he said.

Fort Bliss' desert location gives the Army the ability to use its communication systems while interfering very little with civilian functions, like emergency calls, he added.

"We have moved our systems from analog to digital systems," Dragon said. "That's been a major push in the past 10 to 15 years. We are at the point we are connected from the higher echelons down to the soldier level.

"Now, soldiers can access information that they couldn't access before over a digital medium," Dragon continued. "And they can do that on the ground and in a forward deployed location."

"They can see things and act faster," he added.

The command not only evaluates equipment, but makes sure these items work well with all the other tools a soldier has, Dragon said.

During his tenure, Dragon's unit moved into a new headquarters building -- renovated Hinman Hall at 2 Sheridan Road.

Also during the past 21 months, the unit has validated 15 pieces of equipment and/or systems that will now be sent to Afghanistan with two brigades from the 10th Mountain Division, Dragon said. This division is headquartered at Fort Drum, N.Y.

Next year, plans are being made to expand the NIE to include sister services like the Navy, Air Force and Marines and allied nations, Dragon said.

"We have loved it here," Dragon said. "El Paso has wrapped its arms around Fort Bliss and I think the soldiers have benefited from that, and Fort Bliss has made a real effort to be part of the community."

David Burge may be reached at dburge@elpasotimes.com; 546-6126. Follow him on Twitter @dburge1962.

Dragon at a glance

Brig. Gen. Randal A. Dragon, 55, is the son of a Navy chief petty officer. He considers northern Virginia to be home.

Dragon will relinquish command of the Brigade Modernization Command on March 26. A Change of Command Ceremony will be held at 11 a.m. at the Fort Bliss and Old Ironsides Museum complex, 1735 Marshall Road. The public is invited to attend.

Dragon has served in the Army for 33 years.

He has a bachelor's degree in psychology from James Madison University and masters degrees in systems technology from the Naval Postgraduate School, in military art and science from the Army Command and General Staff College and in strategic studies from the Army War College.

He and his wife Leslie have three children -- Michael, 15, a freshman at Chapin High School; Kristen, 21, who is studying biomechanical engineering at Virginia Tech; and David, 29, a software engineer.

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